By TOMMY REZAC
St. Joseph Post
The Missouri Western men's basketball team (13-9) has earned the No. 3 seed in the MIAA Tournament.
The Griffons tied for third with Missouri Southern after MWSU knocked off UNK, 74-72, on Saturday.
The Griffons and Lions split their season series, but Missouri Western had the tiebreaker over Southern, because of their two wins over Washburn this season.
The third-place finish is the best for Western since 2003. It's also the second straight year that Missouri Western has finished in the top four in the MIAA standings.
The Griffons will square off against No. 6 seed Lincoln in the first round. That game will take place Wednesday inside the MWSU Fieldhouse. The game will tip at 7 p.m., and be carried live on KFEQ Radio (680 AM, 95.3 FM) with pregame starting at 6:30.
Missouri Western and Lincoln split their two meetings in the regular season. The Griffons rolled past the Blue Tigers on December 3 in St. Joseph, 89-73, while Lincoln returned the favor on January 30 in Jefferson City with a 95-74 blowout victory.
All of the quarterfinals take place on Wednesday, March 3, at the four highest seeded sites.
The other matchups include No. 1 Northwest Missouri State vs. No. 8 Emporia State, No. 2 Washburn against No. 7 Rogers State and No. 4 Missouri Southern vs. No. 5 Central Oklahoma.
The Bearcats (21-1) will tip off Wednesday at 5:30 p.m. The Northwest men concluded their regular season Saturday with an 87-62 win over Fort Hays State at Bearcat Arena.
The semifinals and championship will be played at the highest remaining seed following the quarterfinals. There will be two semifinal games on Friday, March 5, with the championship game set for Saturday, March 6. Game times are yet to be determined.
2021 MIAA Men's Basketball Championship Tournament presented by Citizens Bank & Trust
1. Northwest Missouri State
2. Washburn
3. Missouri Western
4. Missouri Southern
5. Central Oklahoma
6. Lincoln
7. Rogers State
8. Emporia State
Wednesday, March 3 - Quarterfinals
No. 8 Emporia State at No. 1 Northwest Missouri
No. 7 Rogers State at No. 2 Washburn
No. 6 Lincoln at No. 3 Missouri Western
No. 5 Central Oklahoma at No. 4 Missouri Southern